I'm Not Insensitive, I Just Don't Care
by Jessica-Lilian
Summary: Rosalie's thoughts and opinions on some of the more important events in Breaking Dawn. Mostly the ones centered around Renesmee.
1. The Phone Call

**A/N: This ****was just a thought that popped into my head, and something that I've always wondered about when reading BD. A**ctually, it started out as a one-shot, but then I started to wonder what Rosalie would have thought of other events in BD. I also think that Rosalie has one of the biggest personalitites in the book, but is nearly always overlooked. Okay, that's enough from me.

**Disclaimer: If you think that I own Twilight, then you're sorely mistaken.**

**The Phone Call**

I felt my cell phone vibrate in my pocket, signalling an incoming call. I picked it up to check the caller ID and ended up staring at the screen in shock.

_Why would Edward be calling _me_? _

I realised that I was gaping like a goldfish with my mouth hanging open, so I hurried to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Rosalie? It's Bella. Please. You have to help me."

She was whispering, which meant that she didn't want Edward to hear. _Why? What could possibly have happened that had made Bella want to call _me? I mean, I hadn't exactly been _nice _to her over the last year and a half. Hell, I'd rarely even been _civil._ I'd made it perfectly clear what I thought of her insane decision to throw her life away on my idiotic brother – I'm not kidding here, she's literally throwing her life away.

So I guess it won't come as such a shock to you that all I could think right about now was 'Why on Earth would she want _my _help? She should at least ask someone that likes her.' Okay, that was kind of harsh; I didn't dislike Bella, (not that I actually liked her either) I was just strongly opposed to the (very WRONG) decision she was making.

If I was anyone else I probably wouldn't have been surprised that she was calling me. Given that Carlisle had looked worried sick (even though it's impossible for vampires to get sick) ever since he'd gotten off the phone with Edward, most people (which, in case you haven't already noticed, I most certainly am _not_) would have gotten the idea that something was up and that Edward and Bella might need help.

But not me. No, I was too used to Edward worrying about all that trivial shit that doesn't really matter to anyone to let myself be bothered by this. For almost a century, I've put up with Saint Edward, and the insanely unfair favourtism that goes on in our family. You see, in our house, Saint Edward can do no wrong. And when he's in a snit and has a temper tantrum, you can guaruntee that Princess'll get what he wants. And if he's even the _slightest _bit worried about _anything _then Carlisle and Esme will go into full-blown panic mode for sure. They can't have anything upsetting their precious baby Edward. Honestly it makes me sick; if I hadn't built up a ninety-odd year tolerance for it (and were physically able) then I'd be throwing my guts up right about now.

So, anyway, I wasn't all that bothered when Carlisle began to panic. But I _was _surprised when I got this phone call from Bella.

"Rosalie, please... Are you still there?"

"Huh? Oh... yeah. I'm sorry, I guess I'm just shocked, is all. What do you want?"

"You have to help me–"

"You already said that."

"You didn't give me a chance to finish!"

"Right, sorry." Before you ask, yes, I was very aware that I didn't sound the least bit sorry.

"I have to hurry before Edward comes back, so... okay, here goes," I heard her take a deep breath as if this was hard for her to do. And I had to admit that Carlisle might have had a valid reason for his panic this time 'cos, hell, she was starting to freak me out! This girl doesn't worry often—well, not about herself, and it's not like anything could really happen to Edward.

"We think that I'm pregnant."

Silence. I could hear her breathing spike – she was worried about my reaction. And why wouldn't she be; it was taking all of my self control not to smash the cell phone in my hand and scream and smash something highly expensive and unbreakable to humans.

But I reined it in. I inhaled deeply through my nose and out through my mouth before I answered through gritted teeth.

"How could you _possibly _be pregnant? And what do you mean _we_? If there was _any _way for vampires to have babies, any at all, then I would have found it by now."

"Not like this," Okay, was I supposed to know what the hell that meant? Apparently not because she then explained. "This is my theory. So, you guys are, like, frozen, right, so you don't age? You can't change. But womens' bodies_ need _to change in order to have children. But guys pretty much stay the same from their teenage years till they die. So it makes sense that _they _can still have children while you can't."

She breathed this huge sigh of relief at the end of all this, like she'd said the lot in one single breath. I wouldn't know; after all, I don't make a habit of paying attention to other peoples' breathing patterns.

I replayed what she'd just said over in my head, and I had to admit that her theory made a lot of sense. That also might have explained Carlisle's panic: as far as I knew, there hadn't ever been a vampire/human baby before. Carlisle obviously thought the same thing. But then that brought up the question of why she was asking for _my_ help.

"So why exactly do you need my help?"

"Edward."

Of course. But a part of me was curious as to what he thought of all this—I mean, his wife's pregnant. That's a pretty big deal. But I still didn't see why she would need my help.

"What about him?"

"Kaure, one of the cleaners, had heard legends about 'blood-drinkers' and apparently that included stories about what's growing inside of me. From what I can tell, the mothers didn't survive, so Edward thinks it's _dangerous_. He's arranging our flight home right now. He called it a _thing_, Rosalie. Our baby! He wants to destroy it! You have to help me, Rosalie, please! He's already got Carlisle on his side, and there's nothing I can do against vampires!"

I was momentarily shocked by what she'd just said... and, boy, was I pissed! But then I realised that Bella really would need all my help, and I could do nothing but give it to her.

"Of course I'll help you! I promise I won't let them near you, or the baby!"

She hurriedly said she had to go, and that she'd meet me at the airport, then hung up, leaving me alone with my thoughts. This may, or may not have been a good thing: my thoughts at that time were a swirling mess of anger, jealousy and happiness.

The anger was at Edward, for obvious reasons. Just how he could want to kill any child, let alone his own was a wonder to me! And why should he get the right to decide whether or not that baby lives? _I _would give birth before I let them kill that baby! How could they _want _to destroy it? Didn't Edward understand that this was his _child_? Didn't he understand that Bella had a say in this too?

Evidently not. And that just made me more mad and more jealous at the same time. He now had everything that he could possibly want—everything the rest of us couldn't have—and he wanted to destroy his own happiness! He was acting like an ungrateful, spoiled child! Bella was pregnant with their first child; this was supposed to be one of the happiest moments of their existence! And Bella had to constantly worry about her dick-headed husband! She had no one to share this with but me, and Esme, if anyone had told her. Regardless of Edward's reaction, _I _was happy for Bella.

I took a moment to just breathe and calm down, and I realised that I was also in complete shock. Again. Not for the Edward thing, his reaction was totally predictable, now that I thought about it, but Bella had finally made the right choice. The one I would have made. Because she'd been so willing to turn into a vampire, I'd taken it for a given that she wasn't the maternal sort. And now she wanted me to help her do everything in our power to keep her baby safe.

I wondered if there was actually any chance that I could win a fight against Edward, let alone Edward and Carlisle together. But when I thought about it, I might not be alone. I was fairly sure that Alice and Jazz would be staying pretty much out of this, but I knew for certain that Em would never let anyone hurt me. And if Esme knew, she would probably be on mine and Bella's side, too. And Carlisle wouldn't ever imagine fighting with Esme. So maybe we won't have to worry. They'll have to be watched, all the time, but that's hardly a problem for me, because vampires don't need to sleep, or do anything, really.

Then I thought about what Bella had said about the mothers surviving (or not, as the case may be). She said that the woman had heard _legends_.

_Well, _I thought, _if they're legends, they probably happened a really long time ago, if at all. And they were probably the offspring of some evil incubus, so the children wouldn't have had all of the love and the care that Bella's will. And they hadn't had Carlisle. _

I kept on that train of thought; if anyone could get both Bella and the baby through this alive then it would be Carlisle. The only vampire doctor, which meant that we had a lot of access to the medical equipment needed for Bella and the baby.

It suddenly occurred to me that Bella didn't _have _to make it through this alive: we could use venom to heal any damage that the baby does. Edward couldn't complain about that. After all, he's been planning on turning Bella anyway, and this way he got to keep her and the baby. So, really it was a win win all round. My mood lifted as I thought that maybe, just maybe, we could pull this off after all.


	2. The Return

**The Return**

Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!

Those words were repeatedly running through my head as I paced up and down the waiting area in the airport.

"Man, if she keeps that up, she's gonna leave dents in the floor," I heard Emmett mumble to Jasper. He obviously didn't mean for me to hear, but I did. So I gave him my best death-stare; one that I know turns peoples' insides into ice, the same one that actually made one stupid freshman piss himself once. I love Emmett, he's my whole existence, but sometimes he just doesn't know when to leave it alone.

I saw Carlisle looking at me worriedly. I'm pretty sure he had an idea what was up. I mean, he obviously knew that Bella was pregnant – who else on Earth would they be able to ask for help? But I wasn't sure that he knew why _I _was so anxious to meet them. He must have known. Granted, he wasn't there to overhear the phonecall (no one was), and I hadn't even _thought_ about telling anyone – it was _their _news to share.

I felt a twinge of jealousy as I thought that. The one thing I wanted most in the world and Edward had to be the one to get it. _Edward! _Of all the vampires in the world, it had to be _Edward! _Seriously, there's some higher power up there that just has it in for me. Why else would everything that I've wanted go to the one person most likely to flaunt it and rub it my face! Okay, so that higher power may have reasons other than spiting me, but really, this is just ridiculous! Or as Edward would say, _absurd._

Ugh, this is so unfair. And I can't _believe_ Edward! He wants to get rid of the baby! How could he _do_ that! Hasn't he even considered the fact that _Bella _might want to keep it? It is hers as well, after all. And he just wants to destroy it, like it's some sort of monster! How can it be a monster; it's a _baby_. Hasn't he thought what this would mean to me? To Esme? To our family? No, he hasn't, because all he cares about is Bella. There's a _slight _ chance that she migt die, so he wants to destroy the baby's life. The life _he _created. How could he do that?

But, I suppose the only person who gets how Edward's mind works is Bella. Hell, Carlisle's lived with him for around a century and he _still _has trouble trying to understand him.

Personally, I think that Edward's being all the things he thinks I am: selfish, inconsiderate and ignorant of other peoples' wants and needs. And I know that a lot of the time, I _am_ selfish, but I am not ignorant of other people. Nor am I inconsiderate. I died, one of the most painful and brutal deaths you could think of, and I've lived, almost a century, always on the outskirts; part of a community, but somehow still an outsider. I've had to watch, countless times, as people got to grow up, have families, have careers, and just _live_, while I've had to live in the shadows having everything you could think of but unable to have a _life_. I've spent years living as a slave to this thirst, but I'm not like the others: not once did I cave. I never gave into that need. I killed, sure, but I never drank any blood. And to top it all off, I have eternity ahead of me to continue this monotonous existence, living the same life, over and over. So, of course, I have to ask the forgiveness of Saint Edward for thinking human existence is trivial. And for not caring about their problems and what they want when they've always regarded us as something other and treated us as though we're aliens, or something. My family, though, that's a whole different story. These are people that I love (even if it's just in a 'you're-my-brother-so-I-have-to' kind of way), and people that _are _going to be around for the rest of my existence. Their opinions are actually relevant to me, and their actions affect mine, unlike other peoples'. So, no matter what Edward says, it's not that I'm an insensitve bitch; it's just that, sometimes, I really don't care because it just doesn't matter to me.

I was so distracted, I almost didn't notice when a sudden wave of happiness went coursing through me. I turned around and smiled at Jasper. It didn't completely work, but I had to admire his efforts at trying to cheer me up.

"C'mon, Rose, cheer up," Emmett said, with that adorable goofy grin on his face. "Edward and Bella are coming home! From their honeymoon! Think of how much fun we'll be able to have teasing them!" Even Jasper laughed, but I could only smile sadly; with all the baby-momma-drama that'll be going on, they won't get much chance to take the piss out of Edward. And that was something I nearly always enjoyed doing.

Masses of people came out of the arrivals gate then, and we all started scanning the crowd for Edward and Bella. It wasn't really that hard—all we had to look for was Edward's stupid hair, and people trying to flee from his foul temper. And I knew he would be in a temper—he was worried about Bella and angry at himself.

After a couple of minutes the crowd cleared and we caught sight of them. I didn't think they'd take this long 'cos Edward would likely be in a hurry to get Bella to Carlisle, but maybe Bella's condition had forced them to slow down.

I almost panicked then, but they saw us, and Bella ran into my arms then let out a sigh of relief. I couldn't help but think of Bella and the baby and how different our family would be after this.

At the same time, though, I couldn't help but worry about what I was going to do about Edward. Usually, I'd just remove the threat/annoyance, but I couldn't do that. It would destroy the rest of our family. Plus, you know, he had been my brother for the last however many decades. So, no, I'd have to put up with him and all his jack-ass-ness. Once he'd decided to do something there was no stopping him—take the Volterra incident for example. He'd decided he was going to get himself killed, so he set out to do just that. There was even a very short amount of time when Bella couldn't get him to change his mind. Then he brought the biggest possible threat down on our entire family, just because he decided that Bella was going to die anyway, because he refused to change her. Ugh, Edward is such a hypocrite—he calls Bella stubborn, and me selfish!

A sudden growl brought me out of my musings. Edward had been listening to my thoughts, obviously confused as to why Bella would go to _me _of all people. I think that's why he took so long to react: he was in shock.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Rosalie?" he snarled. He actually _snarled. _At _me. _I scoffed. Stupid little brother.

I gave him my best sickly sweet smile, and cocked my head to one side. "Not here, Eddie, you'll make a scene." Usually, calling him Eddie was Emmett's thing, but it just pissed him off so much I couldn't resist.

I looked around at the others and saw confusion on Emmett's, Jasper's, Esme's and, for the first time ever, Alice's faces. I saw a look of dawning comprehension on Carlisle's face and outrage and indignation on Edward's. I loved winding him up. He was so funny when he was annoyed. His anger wasn't impressive to me at all.

"Rosalie's right, Edward. We'll all talk when we get home. For now let's just focus on getting there," Carlisle interjected before Edward could start yelling, or do something equally dramatic that would draw unwanted attention to us.

oOo

Edward was already slamming his car door as the rest of us pulled into the driveway. He had a face like thunder and stomped like a child into the house. I didn't need to have Alice's gift to see a huge Eddie-fit coming on.

I held on to Bella, who looked slightly afraid as she looked up at me. I sent a reassuring smile at her then followed Edward into the dining room. That was where all our 'family discussions' took place.

In my peripheral vision, I saw the others exchanging nervous glances—they'd been filled in on the journey home. Jasper tried to calm everyone down, especially Bella and Edward, but in Edward's case it was pretty pointless.

Edward managed to keep his temper in check until we'd all sat down, but after that his patience was all used up, and he repeated his earlier question.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Rosalie? You have no right to be involved in this, so you'll have to find some other way to be an interfering witch," he growled out, just low enough so Bella wouldn't hear. Which, by the way, I thought was extremely unfair, considering that this involved her too. So when I replied, it was loud enough for everyone to hear.

"You're being an idiotic jerk! Not to mention an inconsiderate ass-hole! I have every right to be involved—we _all _do! This isn't just about you and Bella, moron, this is about our entire family!"

"Rose! Don't be so hard on your brother," Esme admonished. Oh, sure, never insult the favourite.

"I'll try to be nicer, if he tries to be smarter," I snarled.

That one got a few laughs from Em and Jazz. Even Bella grinned, before turning to Edward and saying, "She's right. I don't know what exactly you said, but it was a very stupid thing to say, Edward... especially when _I asked her _to help me."

After she said all that, she gave him that look that she gets when she's decided something and she's not going to give an inch. Edward's reaction to that was priceless: I was now extremely glad that I had perfect photographic recall, and that Edward married someone just as stubborn as he is.

The boys looked shocked, and so did Alice. Carlisle didn't look surprised; just as though we'd confirmed something he'd thought for a while. Esme sat looking from me to Bella and back, as though watching a tennis match. She looked really pleased about something. At first I thought that it was because of the whole baby thing, but when I thought about it, it was probably because me and Bella were actually getting along. Now the whole family loved each other—woop-di-doo, joy for us.

"So this is why you weren't talking on the flight home?" He looked down at the table, "I thought you were mad at me for putting your life in danger again," he mumbled. I snorted. What an idiot.

"Rosalie, don't make that noise it's rude," Esme scolded.

"I should hope so, it was a snort of derision," I retorted.

Bella glared at us both for interrupting, and I had to admit, that whilst her anger wasn't all that impressive, the fact that she was willing to glare at two vampires kind of was. She held our gaze for a couple of seconds then responded to Edward. "I called Rosalie because I want to keep this _baby, _Edward. _I _wouldn't be able to stop you from destroying it if you really wanted to. Rosalie was the only one I was sure would help me." Her emphasis on the word 'baby' annoyed him, we could all tell. But he was glowering at me, so I was obviously the main cause of his aggravation.

"You shouldn't have done that, Bella. That monster, that _thing _inside of you will most likely kill you!" He wasn't quite yelling, but you could tell he was building up to an explosion.

Bella was completely calm in the face of his anger — a feat I had to admire. Most people would have flinched.

"Okay, first of all, Kaure only heard _legends _about them, so for all we know, none of it might be true. And second, Carlisle is, like, the only vampire doctor in existence, so even if they were true, they wouldn't have had the right sort of care and medical attention."

I chose that moment to voice my opinion. "I agree. With Carlisle's knowledge and his status here in Forks, we can have access to all the medical equipment and care that Bella and the baby will need. And, whether or not those legends were true, we can still use this as an opportunity to explore this whole new facet of the vampire existence."

"Subtle, Rose," Carlisle murmured. I don't really care that everyone saw through my attempt to get Carlisle on our side, as long as it worked. And judging by the expression on his face (which Em and I liked to call his 'thinking-face'), it _was _beginning to work.

It was becoming increasingly obvious that Alice and Jasper weren't going to be taking sides in this argument, and all of us already knew that Esme was on mine and Bella's side. Emmett would never side against me, and with Carlisle thinking that last statement over, it was becoming clearer to Edward that he was fighting a losing battle. Well, if it wasn't already then he just heard it in my head, so he would realise it now.

He scowled at me, so I smirked back. I didn't say anything: after all, I shouldn't rub it in. Too much.

He looked around at all of us, then scowled again. "You're all being ridiculous. This thing could _kill _Bella!" He sounded exasperated. If he wasn't fighting so hard to destroy this baby, then I would have felt sorry for him.

Bella sighed and said, "Edward, I know..." she sighed again and looked down at the table. "I know that... that I'm... that I won't... survive this... human." She breathed out then, like she was glad to have gotten that out of the way. "All you have to do is keep my heart beating, and the venom will fix any damage the baby might cause."

She looked up at him then, and you could see the resolve in her eyes. She was going to do this, even if it killed her.

Jasper and I were the only ones that didn't look at least a little bit shocked. I was surprised at that, but then I realised that the others must not have thought it through that far. And Jasper always thinks of everything.

Esme was smiling; her family would be complete at last. Carlisle still looked surprised, but slightly pleased. Alice had somehow managed to simultaneously look happy and frustrated, and Emmett just looked pleased that Bella would finally be a vampire.

Edward looked around at us all again, his shoulders slumped and he sighed, finally admitting defeat. He looked so dejected that, for the first time in a long time, I really did feel sorry for him. "Fine," he huffed.

Carlisle spoke up. "Well, it's settled then. Bella's going to keep the baby, and we change her immetiately after the birth," turning to Bella he continued, "Perhaps you should get some rest, it's been a long day."

She nodded, then got up to leave, taking Edward with her. The rest of us left the dining room in pairs, Emmett and I being the last ones. I turned to him and we smiled at each other. He took my hand then I leaned my head on his shoulder. I was glad that he knew what this meant to me. What this could mean to all of us. It made me feel peaceful, content. I even didn't mind that I had to do guard-duty.


	3. The Birth

**The Birth**

I caught her almost the moment she blacked out.

Sheer terror crashed through my body like a tsunami: what if something happened to the baby? I held Bella's lifeless body in my arms. She couldn't quit, not now! She couldn't do that to us – the baby had to get out alive!

Then I heard her shriek. It was one of those screams that belong in horror movies; but then, don't we all belong in a horror movie in this house? That shriek was pitched to smash glass – never mind what it did to my sensitive hearing. Her fragile body twitched and arched in my stone arms. I hadn't felt this helpless since I carried Emmett to Carlisle after the bear attack: I couldn't do anything but hold him then, for fear of hurting him more. And now I couldn't do anything for Bella, in case I hurt the baby.

She violently threw up a river of blood, and I looked at my brother. I knew then that whatever helplessness I was feeling, his was ten thousand times worse.

Suddenly realising that we had temporarily frozen while Bella and the baby were looking as though they were being electrocuted, I snapped. I picked Bella up and ran. Edward was yelling at me – some crap about morphine. None of us had a clue what we were doing! We had to get Carlisle!

As I told Alice to get Carlisle on the phone, I was vaguely aware of the mutt following us to the second floor. Oh, who am I kidding, you can't be anything _but _aware with that stench under your nose! But maybe I should be grateful: it was distracting me from the vomit-blood.

I pinned Bella down on the table in our home-made surgery and ripped her clothes away. I froze for a second when Edward said that the placenta had detached – this couldn't happen, the baby had to live!

Bella snapped me out of it when she ordered Edward to get the baby out first. I agreed with her, of course, and would have vocalised it had Alice not attached the earpiece to my ear right that second. I was aware that I was hissing at Carlisle worse than a rudely awoken boa constricter, but I didn't care – this was far too important: the baby couldn't _breathe! _We had to get him out! And Edward was still on about the freakin' morphine! This was _his _kid for Christ's sake!

I hung on to every word Carlisle said – I had to do exactly what he told me, or the baby would die. He _was _dying. That couldn't happen – at any cost!

I pierced Bella's stomach with the scalpel, and time stopped. The foul, burning reek of wet dog wasn't enough any more as Bella's blood literally poured out of her.

I was thirsty. So thirsty. I hadn't been this thirsty in a long time. And there was so much blood. And she was close; all I had to do was lean forward and...

"No, Rose!" Edward's yell barely registered in my brain. It was like I was hearing it through a badly tuned radio, with the volume on low. The next thing I was aware of, I was crashing into the floor. Between the force and speed of impact, it was a wonder it didn't cave in. I was away from Bella, but that didn't stop the thirst. It didn't stop me wanting her blood; she smelled too good, and I hadn't hunted in so long.

I realised that the scalpel wasn't in my hand any more, and felt a vindictive satisfaction when I saw it in the mongrel's arm. But then he blocked my airways and I saw everything with amazing clarity: yes, I wanted Bella's blood, but the baby needed to live! I felt the dog kick me in the stomach and into the door, and I was _grateful. To the dog. _A tiny part of my conscience was noting how that was one of the most humiliating experiences in my existence; the rest of it was battling with the thirst.

The thirst was like its own entity, thinking for itself; it wanted to fight, and was angry at the mutt for putting me away from the blood. But in my mind I knew it was better this way: away from the blood meant away from the baby. The baby would be safe, and there was no chance that I could hurt him. I was desperate: I needed the dog to win. And considering the way I'd been behaving around Bella lately, I'm pretty sure he knew it.

I didn't notice the earpiece smashing into a thousand tiny pieces or my head knocking into the door-frame, but I did notice Alice grabbing me by the throat and dragging me out of the room. Edward told her to take me to Jasper, and to keep me there. I had no doubt that that was what she'd do. And I wanted her to do it, too. No, I _needed_ her to do it, because what had just happened really hit me then, and I felt guilt and shame. I could have killed them both. And then we wouldn't ever get this baby.

We were with Jasper now, out in Esme's garden, a safe distance away from the blood, in the clean air. Or as clean as it got with werewolves hanging around.

Jasper looked at me then, and I remembered that he could feel the shame and guilt rolling off me in tidal waves. He was the only one that could really even come close to understanding how I was feeling now, and not just because he was an empath. I'm sure this is what he felt after Bella's birthday party, almost a year ago today. Or some variation of it at least. Because even that wasn't really the same: he would only have killed Bella, but I would have killed them both today, Bella and the baby.

He sent a wave of peacefulness towards me, and I smiled at him. This is why he was my favourite brother; he actually tries to calm me down, rather than trying to piss me off even more. But then Jasper didn't have a baby... No. That will just bump Bella up to favourite sister, Edward's still an ass. And then I can be the baby's favourite aunt...

I was sure neither of us were breathing. We could still hear everything that was going on in the house, clear as day. We heard Bella's spine snap, and Edward tell the pup to keep her heart beating. We heard Edward rip the baby out with his teeth. If we weren't already not breathing, we would have held our breath. We heard the mutt tell Bella to focus on him, and then we heard Edward speak again.

"Renesmee."

That was all he said. It shouldn't have been a shock, really. Bella _was _ usually wrong about those sorts of things, but then that would mean the mutt was right. And I certainly didn't want to admit to that. But it was a baby girl! Esme would be so happy!

We heard Edward take Renesmee from Bella and then Bella's heart stopping. When the mutt said to throw Renesmee out the window I wanted to punch him in his hideous face then rip his stupid head off! Luckily for him, I restrained myself. Instead I went to Edward, because _someone _needed to take care of her while Edward got Bella's heart beating. We'd already decided that I'd be the one taking care of her while Bella was going through the change.

I felt indescribably happy as I held my niece in my arms for the first time, and went to get her cleaned up, because, let's face it, she was in a bit of a state. As I went to get some of the donated blood we had left over to feed her, I thought that I'd never seen anything more beautiful. She looked like a porcelain doll, only better, more perfect. It was just a shame that the poor kid had Edward's hair.

As I began to feed her, I heard the mutt coming down the stairs: he'd given up. Edward was still with Bella, trying to get her heart to beat. I had faith in them. If anyone could live through this it was Bella. She was stubborn to the point of extreme. But then, who am I to talk?

I didn't want to think about what would happen to Edward if she didn't survive this. He was so happy, after all this time. He'd waited a hundred years, but he had everything. And I wasn't a bit jealous. At all.

Bella better not throw this chance away.

She had to get through this... if not for the baby's sake, then at least for the rest of ours. She was already one of us. During the last month or so, I'd finally come to accept that, and I could actually begin to like Bella for herself, not the decisions she'd made.

After the whole cliff-diving incident earlier this year, we had no doubt that we'd lose Edward, too, if she died. It'd tear us apart, just like last time. Our family would never be the same if we lost them now, it was only just complete.

My thoughts were interrupted by the mongrel entering the room behind me. I ignored him and went back to feeding Renesmee, smiling to myself. The sooner Bella's officially one of us, the sooner the mutt will scram.


	4. The Imprint

**A/N: Sorry about the long-ass time it took me to update. I tried, repeatedly, to get this chapter exactly the way I wanted it, but I just couldn't get it to work. And around five re-writes later, I'm still not entirely happy with it. But that's the way it goes. And I hope you enjoy, regardless. **

**The Imprint**

_My thoughts were interrupted by the mongrel entering the room behind me. I ignored him and went back to feeding Renesmee, smiling to myself. The sooner Bella's officially one of us, the sooner the mutt will scram. _

I stood there, quite happily, just bouncing Renesmee in my arms after I'd finished feeding her. I still had a smile on my face; it seemed as if it would always be there now that I had the angel in my arms to take care of. As always, I was aware of everything surrounding me. I could hear Edward sigh in relief as he got Bella's heart to start beating again. I could hear Alice on her way to go and help him clean Bella up. And I could hear the mutt's steady breathing behind me. Of course, I could smell him, too. I was beginning to get annoyed; hadn't he left yet? I didn't even bother glancing at him, I just continued on with my thoughts. I wondered if Alice could see Renesmee now that she'd been born, and I wondered just how aware she was. From the exchanges between Bella and Edward I'd garnered that she was already quite intelligent. Personally, I'd venture a guess at more intelligent than the mongrel over there, but, hey, that's just me. That being said, I wondered what Edward could 'hear' from her. Did she have coherent thoughts like the rest of us, would she have no thoughts but abstract... things like normal babies, or was the answer closer to somewhere between the two? Once more I sought to distract myself by turning my attention to the cherubic child in my arms, but apparently, this was not acceptable. I would be forced to pay attention to the mutt.

Why, you ask? Well, I'll tell you. She was staring right past me, staring at him. It was at this point that _I _turned around to look at him; really look at him, and not just a peripheral glance. What the hell was he staring at? I was about to angrily and loudly ask that question, when I was interrupted by Edward and Alice entering the room. Edward was looking at Jacob with an unreadable expression on his face, and Alice was massaging her temples and muttering something along the lines of 'I'm never gonna see clearly again'. Both these things only added to my rapidly growing confusion. I do _not _like being confused. And let me tell you, the rate of my anger increases in a very precise correlation to the rate of my confusion. In short, things weren't looking too good for Jacob right now. What with him being the cause of my currrent confusion and the cause of a good portion of my anger in general. I pulled Renesmee – who had somehow managed to twist herself in my arms so she was looking straight at the mutt – closer to me, and took on a defensive stance, facing all of them. I knew that if it came to it, I would only be able to take Jacob (though it didn't look like Alice could see much right now), but I couldn't help it. It was pure instinct. Edward was obviously the only one that had any clue what was going on, and apparently he didn't like it. What really shocked me, though, was that while I was thinking this, Edward had moved to stand to my right, but slightly in front me, adopting the same stance that I had. Then he snarled at Jacob.

Instantly, I was on alert. Edward had superb self-control: he always had immaculate control over his temper – a trait I sometimes envied - and there were very few things that could test it. I could feel a growl building in my own chest as Jacob held up his hands and backed away. His expression was guarded, but there were other things there, too. Worry? Perhaps anxiety would be more fitting. Protectiveness? Looking again I saw that it wasn't so much protectiveness as possessiveness.

Edward must have been listening to some poor excuse for an explanation inside Jacob's head, because I still didn't have a clue what was going on, and Edward was just getting angrier. All I knew was that I did not like the way the mutt was looking at Renesmee.

I tightened my hold on my niece, and shifted my gaze from the mutt, to Edward and back again, all the while ready for some kind of attack.

Except it wasn't the kind of attack I was expecting. If the dog wanted to kill Renesmee that badly, surely he would have done it already. Or tried to do it already. There was no way he'd beat me and Edward together. Hell, he wouldn't beat Edward _alone_. And yet, Edward was on the defensive, obviously expecting _something. _

It was too much for me, now. I straightened up a fraction and voiced my thoughts. "What the hell is going on?" It pleased me when the mutt winced at my question. Hopefully that meant we had an excuse to tear him apart. I still owed him a kick in the gut, after all. He definitely looked... guilty.

I had been expecting either Edward or Jacob to answer, but instead it was Alice. "Jacob _imprinted _on Renesmee. And now I can hardly see a thing..." She mumbled the last part because she knew that I didn't care right now. As soon as she said the word 'imprinted', my mind was in a red haze of fury and the target was the mongrel. If looks could kill, his brains would have been splattered on the wall, already.

"What?" I managed shriek and growl at the same time. It just wasn't processing in my mind. It was all clouded by the red fury. But the words were just going round and round. 'Jacob _imprinted _on Renesmee', '_Jacob_ imprinted on Renesmee', 'Jacob imprinted on _Renesmee_'.

"It's not _intentional! _It's involuntary!" The mutt's voice cut my thoughts short and I growled at him, once more preparing to spring an attack. I was vaguely aware of Edward doing something similar, but he just _had_ to start talking again. "Would you just _listen _to me for once!" That did it. I had no reason whatsoever to listen to that mutt, and I didn't intend to listen. We'd all been perfectly happy with our lives until he'd came along, and now that things were supposed to go back to normal, he just had to rock the boat again. I lunged for his throat.

I didn't get very far, though. Alice and Edward had grabbed onto me, effectively stopping me from going anywhere. I kept struggling, trying to get out of my brother's and sister's iron grip, but then a cry from Renesmee stopped me. There was something about that cry that made me stop. That cry was almost... anguished. Not that I wouldn't have stopped anyway. Renesmee was so precious, she shouldn't ever have a reason to cry, especially like that.

"You can't hurt me without hurting her!" The mongrel practically yelled at me. It seemed desperate, like it was a last resort argument. I felt Edward loosen his hold on me as I slowly began to stop struggling. Alice had let go completely now, so it was just him holding me back. I was thinking clearly again, and not through a thick haze of red fog. I looked to Edward, and he nodded his head once. I stopped struggling completely.

Renesmee had now twisted up in my arms and she put her hand on my face. I froze, as still as a statue, in total shock. I was seeing a memory of what had just happened, but it wasn't _my _memory. I could see Edward and Alice standing to my side, moving in to hold me back as I lunged for Jacob, who was stood in front of me. And all the while I was looking at Jacob. Except I hadn't been, though I was seeing as if I had. That didn't make sense to me. Nor Edward, apparently. He had a look on his face that could only be described as confusion, so he'd clearly just been reading my thoughts.

"What was that?" He asked me. _Yeah, because I obviously know. _I thought in response. Renesmee put her hand on my face again. And once more I saw the replay of what had just happened. Except this time, I noticed a couple of things. First of all, was that it was _Renesmee's _memory, and second was the possessiveness over the mutt.

I looked at Edward, and I knew that he'd noticed the same things that I had. And I was pretty sure that the frown I wore was identical to his. It was clear from her memory that she didn't want me to hurt the dog. But it was the sense of possession that worried us. He was _hers. _That wasn't right. Everything about this was wrong. She now belonged to _the mutt. _This thought almost made me try to attack him again, but, loath though I was to admit it; he was right. I couldn't hurt him without hurting Renesmee, now.

I needed to get out of there. I needed to take my anger out on something, but I couldn't take it out on Jacob. I handed Renesmee to Edward, and bolted for the woods, leaving behind a very disgruntled Edward, and a mildly confused Renesmee.

oOo

I sat on the edge of a cliff face looking out into the ocean. It was helping to calm me down. Though, to be fair, killing random animals and attacking the mutt had taken a lot out of me. Okay, trying to attack the mutt. But if it helped me get rid of my anger, then who am I to complain. But I actually felt exhausted, now, for the first time since I was human. How was that possible? The answer to that hit me like a tonne of bricks. Suddenly I had hunger pains and my throat was desiccated. I hadn't eaten in almost two months!

I turned and ran back into the woods. There was a deer on the cliff face in front of me to the left. I jumped for it. I kept drinking till it was drained then flung it to the side as I started running again. I kept running until I found something else – elk. Less than satisfying but I needed all I could get. I didn't even consciously follow scents. I kept going. Deer, deer, elk, another deer and a mountain lion. I didn't care what it was, I was just so _thirsty_. I was still running, but slowed to a stop when I realised that I felt full. I thought about everything that had happened that day. Or earlier that day, or yesterday – whatever. I'd lost track of time on my killing spree and it was dark.

Why did that stupid mutt have to go and ruin everything? And why couldn't he leave Edward alone? Poor Edward. First he had to put up with the mongrel trying to take his wife, and now he was after his daughter. He must have been angrier than me. Angrier than he was letting on at least. He'd have to act like he was happy, surely. Renesmee wouldn't like it if Edward didn't like her 'best friend'. And Bella would probably learn to like the idea pretty quickly; it meant that she'd get to keep _him _around. I shuddered at the thought of that. I'd been under the impression that he'd have been out of all our lives as soon as Bella was turned. Of course I thought that; no one would have ever expected anything like this to happen... and now we'd never be rid of him.

I still couldn't believe that he's done this. He'd taken her away from all of us. _Our _Renesmee, is now _his _Renesmee_. _She had only been _born_ a couple of hours ago! Hell, she'd only been born a few minutes before he came and basically set the path for the rest of her life. He'd sat himself at the centre of her universe and he'd stay there always. We knew from Bella and Edward and the time spent around the other wolves what they were like with the subject of their imprints. They were _always_ there. They _needed_ to be around them. And apparently that feeling went both ways. The idea of Renesmee needing a homeless mongrel like that made me sick. If I were human I would have had bile rise up in my throat right now. I wished that it wasn't like that. Then I could kill him and not worry about it. But Renesmee would never forgive me if I killed him. She'd hate me for the rest of her life. I couldn't stand it if that happened. So the mutt would have to live. I wished he'd realise that that didn't equate to living _with us._

Then another thing occurred to me. Renesmee had _shown me her memory_. She'd touched my skin and I'd _seen_ her memory, her thoughts, almost as if it were a T.V. show. I wondered what exactly that meant. Perhaps it was a gift. A talent, of some sort. Yes... that would make sense. Considering Edward had a gift. Given that hers was so similar, yet somehow different, it may have been that she inherited it from him. It was almost the opposite of what Edward does, but not. If it really was a talent, then it was certainly an interesting one. Carlisle would now. Or have many theories. Ah, well, there's only one way to find out.

Standing, I brushed the dirt off my clothes. It was only then I realised that I looked like I'd been dragged through a hedge backwards. Of course I did. Alice would kill me if she knew I'd been out like this. Even if I wasn't seen by other people. The point was I looked worse than Emmett when he'd been wrestling with grizzly bears. I'd have to go home sooner or later. I'd been going for later, but the giant, chaotic mess that was our lives would be there when I got back, either way. I had to start getting used to it.

**Again, sorry about the wait. But let me know what you thought. **


	5. The Battle: Part One

**A/N: Um... wow. Thanks so much to everyone who added this story to their favourites, or their alerts! This is going to be the first part of the last chapter. I was planning to write the battle as one chapter, but it takes up about three in the book, and I can update faster if I write it in three parts, as opposed to one. Also, I know that a lot of this is taken from, and is similar to the book, but if you dont like it, then dont read it. Hope you enjoy.. x**

**The Battle: Part One**

Edward and Carlisle had been in the clearing where Alice had seen the Volturi arrive for the last two days. That same clearing was where Victoria's newborns had attacked. The same clearing where we had our first run-in with James. The same place this whole thing started, in some respects. It was kind of sad that that clearing used to just be our baseball ground. A place where we could all have fun, and just be ourselves, without human interruptions. This whole battle thing was becoming a routine. And I didn't like it. It was like déjà vu, this time. The main differences being that last time the threat was one we could easily eradicate, whereas this time it was a threat that would more than likely eradicate us; and last time I fought because I had to, for my family. I couldn't avoid it. This time around though, I'm still fighting for my family, except now I _want _to.

Ever since the day Renesmee had joined our family she'd had us all wrapped around her little finger. I'd loved that child since the moment I knew of her existence. The others may not have loved her as long as I had, but they certainly loved her as much. So much that we'd die for her. Bella had already proved that, but today, it was likely that the rest of us would, too. I looked at the people around me and was once again shocked by the way she'd brought us all together. And I don't just mean our family and the pack, but all the other covens, too. There were so many of us 'cold-ones' here that the werewolf population had gone into overdrive; yet here we were, natural enemies for as long as anyone can remember, standing together. Right now that didn't matter; a common enemy had united us, and we were all fighting for the same thing: Renesmee.

Every one of us had become increasingly worried over the past few days. More and more frequently I found myself gravitating towards Emmett. I _needed_ to be near him constantly, but to _actually_ benear him constantly would be like resigning myself to our fate; admitting defeat. I was too proud for that, there was still a chance, after all. If we could just get the Volturi to listen to our story, then it may not come to a fight. If there was no fight, we'd all walk out alive. Or not, depending on your view of things. As a result of this, I found myself hovering. Usually in the doorway of whatever room Emmett was in. I honestly didn't know what to do with myself. It was easier when Emmett and I had to go and fetch the nomads. We had something to do, something to occupy ourselves with. Now all there is to do is worry for our own existences, continue to train to fight, hope we were good enough, and fear for Renesmee's life. I didn't _want _to have to do these things. But I will do them every day for the rest of forever if it means keeping my niece alive.

It was the thirtieth of December and it had started to snow again. That meant that Alice's vision would be complete soon. If I had to guess, I'd say the Volturi would come a little after dawn. How fitting. In fact, it was glaringly appropriate. Either the end of the year would bring the end of most of our lives, or the dawn of the new year would bring a new time of peace for our family. Something we'd rarely had since moving back to Forks.

Edward, Bella, Renesmee and Jacob had camped out in the woods for that night – again with the déjà vu – so they were already at the clearing. We'd all agreed that it would be best if we went hunting before hand, to make us stronger, should it come to a fight. I was glad for it, because it was a great way to vent my nerves. My violent killings of deer and elk must have alerted Emmett to my frazzled nervous state, but he knew it was best to just let me get on with it. We didn't say anything to each other the whole time. What was there to say in a situation like this? Goodbye? No. I already said, that would make it too final, and I was too proud.

After we'd drained so many animals we were almost overfed, Emmett and I decided to head for the clearing just before the sun rose completely, thinking that they'd arrive sooner rather than later. We stopped running as we reached the edge of the clearing and saw Carlisle there, with Edward and Bella. Emmett put an arm around my shoulder and I leant heavily on him. It was a small comfort.

There wasn't many others there, so we didn't really know what to do with ourselves. We just stayed with eachother. We still hadn't said much. I could tell that Emmett was gearing himself up for a fight, and he was looking forward to it. He loved that kind of thing, especially now because this would be a challenge. But I could also see that he was just as worried as the rest of us.

We spent the next part of the morning comforting eachother while the other covens and the nomads began to gather around the clearing. Soon, we were all together, and could hear that the wolves were about to join us.

As Edward and Carlisle began to arrange us into a loose formation, my thoughts turned to the day that would come ahead of us. The Volturi would come in vast numbers and have a lot of power. Not just in terms of the extra talents vampires had, but there aren't many who would dare to refute them. If the Volturi said we had to die, many would try to take us out. A thousand 'what if' scenarios flicked through my mind like a flipbook, and an unsettling feeling came over me. For the first time since I was human, I was truly afraid. There were times in this second life that I'd been afraid, but it wasn't the same gut-wrenching fear that I was feeling now. Those other times I wasn't mortally afraid of all of my loved ones possibly dying. I'd never been in a situation where I had to worry about that. Whatever happened to me, I could take. And whatever happened to them, I'd always known that they could take care of themselves. After all, we were some of the strongest creatures out there. Except...

That was just it. The threat we were facing now was the exception. We could defeat what was probably the world's best tracker next to Demetri. We could take on an army of newborns and win. But there was a chance that we couldn't take the Volturi. So this time was different. The fear took a permanent hold as I saw Bella emerge with Renesmee in her arms. I turned to facce the opposite end of the clearing; I was going to suck it up. I may be terrifed, but there was no way in hell I was going to give anyone the satisfaction of showing it. So I pushed my shoulders back as I drew myself up with my head held high. And I waited.

When they finally came, there was an eery kind of elegance about them, that only came from millennia of practise. It didn't take a trained eye to see that they were far more organised and prepared for this than us. I almost gasped at their numbers after their own witnesses joined them, and the fact that the wives really were there. Almost. They wore their expressionless façade, with faces of stone... literally. There were reasons people thought of me as a heartless, uncaring bitch: I could match them. The Volturi's 'witnesses' were as I expected them. The attitude our world held toward the immortal children was well known to me; so it came as no surprise that they were nothing more than an angry mob.

I was so close to letting myself think that Renesmee didn't stand a chance, but for once, I tried to be optimistic. I couldn't give up. She needed us to hold our ground. Just as I thought this I could feel everyone on our side of the clearing practically give up when they saw the numbers. Really, they shouldn't have expected anything less; they were vampire royalty, after all. I rolled my eyes at them all, but something distracted me. I smelled Irina before I saw her. And when I did see her, I didn't know what to feel. Anger, that she'd betrayed us all; loss, because she could no longer be considered part of our extended family; regret, that we hadn't made an attempt to explain things to the Denali coven sooner; or pity, because once the Volturi no longer had need of her they would surely dispose of her. I decided to block those thoughts out for now. It just made things easier. It wouldn't do to get caught up on the way she was horrified that her family were opposing her. It's not that I pitied her; I was incapable of that after she'd brought _this _down on Renesmee. I tried to focus on something, anything, to serve as a distraction from the anger I felt building towards Irina. Edward picked that moment to tell us all that Alistair had been right – they were looking to 'acquire' some of our talents. I scoffed. _And they didn't even know the half of them. _I listened to the tail end of Edward's explanation.

"... other contrived charges, but first they have to stop, to hear the truth about Renesmee. Which they have no intention of doing." I felt my anger boil inside me when he said that. I suddenly found myself thinking along similar lines to my Emmett: I didn't just want them to hear us out and leave anymore, I wanted to fight them. I was seeing red, and I could feel the bloodlust burning through me as I wished they would burn. I envisioned their faces contorted in agony on a funeral pyre, causing my mouth to turn up in a smirk.

It was that exact moment that the Volturi parade came to a halt. It took me all of half a second to figure out why... the wolves had entered the field. I was anticipating their reaction to this; it would come as a shock. They hadn't seen us allied when the newborns attacked, and they'd probably never seen so many in one place.

I was dissapointed. They showed no reaction. Aro, Caius and Marcus had stopped to evaluate, whereas the rest just glared at Bella and Renesmee whilst anticipating our destruction. Irina hovered. She looked torn, but I couldn't bring myself to feel sorry for her; she'd dug her grave, now she had to lie in it. I was so focused on Irina that it startled me when Carlisle addressed Edward.

"They're not sure how to proceed. They're weighing options, choosing key targets – me, of course, you, Eleazar, Tanya. Marcus is reading the strength of our ties to each other, looking for weak points. The Romanians' presence irritates them. They're worried about the faces they don't recognise – Zafrina and Senna in particular – and the wolves, naturally. They've never been outnumbered before. That's what stopped them." He responded. What? Did he just say _outnumbered? _

"Outnumbered?" Tanya asked, echoing my thoughts.

"They don't count their witnesses, they're nonentities, meaningless to the guard. Aro just enjoys an audience." I was more than a little relieved to hear this, because it meant we stood more of a chance. Our task didn't seem so impossible now.

"Should I speak?"

"This is the only chance you'll get."

I was nervous as I watched my surrogate father approach and greet the people that he once considered his friends. I couldn't even begin to imagine how Esme felt seeing him walk up there.

The only emotion I felt watching the exchange was anger. That was, until Caius called Irina. He'd find that she was wrong about Renesmee and he would kill Irina. I didn't need my lost sister's gift to see that – I could feel it.

If I had a heartbeat it would have been going a hundred miles an hour as I watched the next part of the exchange. I felt almost human again, and imagined that I could hear the blood pulsing, pounding in my ears. I could see that Irina began to doubt herself, but I knew that it would do no good. Caius came here for one purpose and one purpose only today. He was out for blood. If, _when _Caius found us innocent, he would need to kill someone. That someone would be Irina. After all, she was the one who brought him all the way out here and got his hopes up. Panic and satisfaction welled up inside me as Caius grew more and more frustrated. Panic, for fear of losing a family member, but satisfaction because she would be punished for wanting to hurt Renesmee.

I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding when the ancients decided to question Edward: Irina was safe for now. A guilty man would have felt nothing other than terror as Aro stated that he will have every facet of the truth. Yet I was not guilty, and I was no man. I drew my shoulders up and stood tall, defiantly. I wanted to dare him to challenge us just to prove him wrong. I knew that Edward heard this – once before he told me I have loud thoughts. Hopefully Edward would act on it, seeing as I couldn't.

I listened to Aro's excuses as to why he wanted to question my brother and scoffed. As if any of us would belive that bullshit. If he got in Edward's head, he got in all of ours and everyone knew it. I heard Esme whimper in fear for her eldest son and my anger was renewed. The next thing I felt was surprise; I obviously missed something, because you could suddenly feel Bella's anger oozing off of her like lava falls from a volcano. I could practically feel it searing my granite skin, and for a split second I was glad that Jasper wasn't there. With that much emotion, he would have mimicked and projected it onto the rest of us – he wouldn't be able to help it. An all-out attack on the Volturi would have resulted in a battle lost before it began.

I wondered if her mind had finally cracked or whether she'd always been insane as I heard her laugh in the next second. And Edward thought _my _moodswings were drastic?

I waited, probably less patiently than the others, as Aro read Edward's thoughts. Though, I was in awe for a little bit – there must have been so much to see and hear. But then I thought that I probably didn't want to see half the stuff Edward's seen. I repressed a shudder and turned my attention back to the pair.

I barely listened to the dialogue between them, or that between Aro and Caius. I fidgeted while I was waiting for them to finish their little spat. It wasn't until Aro asked to meet Renesmee that I reacted. My anger exploded from me. It wasn't as tangible as Bella's earlier, but it was still there. He had come all this way just to _kill _Renesmee, there was no way in hell that I would let him get his filthy hands on her! Tanya put a hand on my shoulder in a silent attempt to calm me down, but I shrugged her off roughly. I _knew_ I couldn't do anything – for Christ's sake did _no one_ think I was capable of self-discipline?

"Will you introduce me to your daughter?" Aro repeated. I heard the hisses in response to his statement and just got more pissed. She's a _child _not a _monster. _I found myself even more disgusted with Aro as he put his arm around Edward's shoulder and agreed to meet in the middle. I didn't like the way he said 'on this one point' like it was the only thing they were going to offer us. Whether Renesmee was an immortal child or not, they were still going to try and find us guilty of _something._

I, and nearly everyone else on our side tensed up when the entire guard made to follow Aro and Edward.

"Hold, my dear ones. Truly, they mean us no harm if we are peaceable." The guard, of course, protested this, and the shield – _Renata – _actually whimpered. Had the situation been less serious, I would have laughed. As it were, I was content with just sneering my nose at her. I scoffed at her pitiful whisper of "Master" and didn't even try to retain my contempt for Aro's band of sycophants. It was pathetic.

"Don't fret, my love, all is well." Cocky git.

"Perhaps you should bring a few members of your guard with us, it will make them more comfortable." My eyes snapped up to look at Edward when he said this. Was he _insane_? What was he thinking? I was left to wonder for just a little while longer though, as Aro, predictably, summoned Felix and Demetri to his side. They were instantly flanking him and I cringed at the thought of either of them being near Renesmee.

They stopped, and Edward spoke. "Bella, bring Renesmee... and a few friends." So _that _ was what he was thinking. If they could have a guard then Renesmee could, too. This made sense. It also made me less worried. Not much, and nowhere near enough to make a difference to my current emotional state, but, still.

It took Bella a split second to decide who she was going to take with her. "Jacob? Emmett?" She looked towards each for their answer then began to approach the place where Edward and Aro had stopped.

I saw the grin on Emmett's face, and I knew that he was happy to go as her 'guard'. But at the same time, I couldn't help but feel my anger rise toward Bella for picking him. Did she have to pick _him? _She knew what it felt like to have your other half walk up there, right into the centre of the fight, virtually unprotected. And Emmett didn't have a mental shield, or the ability to read minds. I knew I wouldn't feel so angry if I was by his side, but that did nothing to calm me down, or stop my old feelings of anger and resentment towards Bella rising to the surface and spilling over. I know that those next to me could feel it, but they probably figured it was aimed at the Volturi.

As Aro met them at the halfway line he spoke, adressing Bella. "But she's exquisite, so like you and Edward. Hello, Renesmee."

"Hello, Aro." Was my niece's response. It felt so horribly wrong having her up there, between us and the guard.

"What is it?" Caius hissed like a snake that had been stood on.

"Half mortal, half immortal, conceived so, and carried by this newborn while she was still human."

"Impossible."

"Do you think they've fooled me, then, brother? Is the heartbeat you hear a trickery as well?"

Aro and Caius's little spat bored me greatly, but I was hanging on every word. It was vital that I pay attention; any small thing said could give something away.

As Renesmee showed Aro whatever image was in her head, I stood rigid with fear and anger. It would be so easy for him to just reach out and snap her neck, and we'd all be powerless. With my teeth gritted and fists clenched, I told myself to suck it up. If Edward and Bella could pretend to tolerate this, then I certainly could, too.

"Of course I have no desire to harm your loved ones, precious Renesmee." Aro's voice cut through my thoughts like a sharp blade. My anger only increased. He was lying to her! How dare he lie to her! We knew it was a lie because of Edward and Maggie's reactions. Apparently he wasn't finished though. "I wonder," he began, all the while looking at Jacob.

"It doesn't work like that," Edward cut him off.

"Just an errant thought."

"They don't _belong _to us, Aro," Edward argued. I wondered what use he could possibly have for the wolves, and what Renesmee had shown him that made him suddenly think there was one. "They don't follow our commands that way. They're here because they want to be." They were talking about those packs of mutts – but _why? _Aro seemed to be under the impression that they were – what was the word he used? - _loyal_ to our family. Well that certainly wasn't true. Or if they were now, then they hadn't always been. I still couldn't fathom why this would make them interesting to Aro – was it that they'd make it harder to kill us all? No. No, somehow I didn't think that was quite it. But I didn't have to wait for the answer long; Edward soon gave it.

"He's intrigued with the idea of... guard dogs." This statement was met with furious growls from both of the packs. I would have disagreed with them if it wasn't for Renesmee. If she didn't need Jacob so much, then I would have gladly given the mutts up to the Volturi's service. And I'm pretty sure Emmett, Jasper and Edward wouldn't have minded, either.

I tuned back into the discussion to hear Aro tell us he needed to 'confer with his brothers'. So they were going to decide which other excuse they'd use to paint us as the bad guys. Let them try. They wouldn't find anything we couldn't counter.


	6. The Battle: Part Two

**Here's the next part of the battle! Hope you're not disappointed. **

**The Battle: Part Two**

All of those on our 'front line', so to speak, were instantly wary as Aro called his guard forward. They were closer to us now. There was about fifty yards between us. They were advancing on us. Emmett, Edward, Bella, and Jacob started backing up with Renesmee, and Caius started arguing with Aro. Of course they were arguing about Renesmee. Caius still wanted to kill her. If it came to a fight he'd have to be one of the first to be taken out. Aro no longer wanted to kill her, but he had wanted Edward and Bella, especially since her gift had manifested itself while she was still human. And now he wanted their child, another jewel to the collection. Something else that I was willing to bet no other vampire covens had. Or maybe he didn't want Renesmee at all. Maybe he just realised that he would have to have Renesmee if he wanted any of the rest of us.

Caius's reaction was odd, though, when Aro said the word 'witnesses'. His expression turned calculating. He then looked at their own witnesses, that were no longer a mob. Well, they kind of were, but now they were just an extremely confused mob, as opposed to an angry mob. For a split-second, he looked nervous, but then it was gone, the look transformed into a frown. It was unsurprising to me; they'd just made a colossal mistake in front of a huge amount of people. The oh-so-infallible Volturi had just gotten something very, very wrong, and there was a whole lot of people there to see it! I laughed to inwardly. But there was nothing to outwardly show of my humour than the smirk on my face. I could practically feel the Romanian's delight at how this was turning out. I smiled wider, and then caught one of the guard glaring at me. _Santiago. _Ha! As if that glare would scare me – what an idiot.

Caius took his time, but finally he found something he thought he could use against us. "The werewolves?" He asked.

"Ah, brother..."

"Will you defend that alliance, too, Aro? The Children of the Moon have been our bitter enemies since the dawn of time. We have hunted them to near extinction in Europe and Asia. Yet Carlisle encourages a familiar relationship with this enormous infestation – no doubt in an attempt to overthrow us. The better to protect his warped lifestyle."

I almost snorted at that last line he spewed – as if _they _were worth putting up with those mutts! Talk about hubris! The only thing that was worth that was Renesmee. Didn't he understand that we were doing this for her? Although, I had to admit that the words 'enormous infestation' were completely accurate.

Edward cleared his throat and informed us all of the oh-so-glaringly obvious. "Caius, it's the middle of the day. These are not Children of the Moon, clearly. They bear no relation to your enemies on the other side of the world."

"You breed mutants here!" Caius shot back. I just managed to stop the growl ripping through my chest at that. The only indication that Edward had heard the slight against his daughter was the clenching and unclenching of his jaw.

"They aren't even werewolves. Aro can tell you all about it, if you don't believe me," He replied. _Way to sound childish, Edward. _I thought. I hoped he heard that.

Around me, I could sense the confusion from the packs; they had no idea what Edward was talking about. Neither did I, really, but I wasn't bothered either way. They were still mongrels, and they still smelled like wet dog, and they were still ass-holes. So I didn't pay attention to the explanation of what they really were, or the fact that Aro instructed Caius to go on to the next strategy. That they would have had to was inevitable.

I had only began to wonder what the next strategy was, when I found out. "I want to talk to the informant," Caius demanded. It was the thing that I'd been dreading since I saw Irina in the field. I didn't want my lost cousin, of sorts, to die... but there was a small part of me that wanted her to pay for wanting to hurt Renesmee. That's why I felt worse and worse watching Irina look at her sisters with nothing but pain on her face.

"Irina!" Caius snapped his fingers and commanded her like a dog. She didn't deserve this. She shouldn't have been humiliated and made an idiot out of. A wave of sadness swept through me as I realised that I could do nothing to help her. "So you appear to be quite mistaken in your allegations," Caius began.

"I'm sorry. I should have made sure of what I was seeing. But I had no idea..." She trailed off helplessly. She knew it was futile, as well as the rest of us.

"Dear Caius, could you expect her to have guessed in an instant something so strange and impossible? Any of us would have made the same assumption," Aro said. His voice was perfectly calm. Too calm. It seemed to me that Aro had another plan to overthrow us, and it wasn't the one that Caius was trying to use now. And Caius obviously didn't know that as he kept on interrogating Irina.

"We all know you made a mistake; I meant to speak of your motivations."

"My motivations?" I felt every bit as nervous for Irina, as she surely felt for herself.

"Yes, for coming to spy on them in the first place. You were unhappy with the Cullens, were you not?"

"I was." Irina's admission hurt us all a little bit. We may have separated our covens, but it still hurt us that one of our own family had wanted to hurt us. I imagined that Esme would be hurt the most.

"Because the werewolves killed my friend. And the Cullens wouldn't stand aside to let me avenge him." Her words were nothing more than a whisper. In all honesty, I'd put the whole Laurent debacle to the back of my mind, where I could ignore it for the rest of forever. I wouldn't have thought that it would have driven Irina to something as drastic as this. I let myself tune out the next part of the discussion, and the basis for Caius' next accusation. It wouldn't work. Irina was our family, and she knew that she'd made a mistake. She'd want to make peace with her sisters, not get us all killed.

She made her final speech, and I was proved right. Irina was very brave, taking full responsibility. Not that it mattered; they'd find an excuse to attack the rest of us anyway. But I could forgive her, now, and so would the rest of our family.

But we couldn't forgive Caius. We realised now that he'd only wanted us to retaliate. If any of us attacked him, the guard would rip us to shreds, and people would only be able to say that it was our own fault, that we should have known better than to attack one of the ancients. The blood-lust came back full force, and I wanted to rip him apart more than any other person on the field. There would be no mercy, now. If it came to a fight, he would be one of the first to go, and he'd deserve it.

Edward's cry of "Stop them!" made me realise that Tanya and Kate _had _reacted; they'd given Caius what he wanted. Edward and Carlisle managed to restrain Tanya, but I was the one closest to Kate. I made a grab for her, but before I could hold her properly, I felt pain shock through me so fiercely that I crumpled to the ground like a paper doll. I was still feeling the after shock of the pain when I noticed that Emmett had fallen to his knees beside me. He'd managed to throw her to the ground before she shocked him, too. I had to fight the instinct to go after Kate for attacking my mate, because it would do no good if we were fighting among ourselves. I saw Garrett grab hold of Kate and refuse to let go. I began to pull myself off the ground, _finally, _and heard Edward call Zafrina, then Tanya ask for her sight back. I was still getting after shocks of the pain from Kate's little _talent, _but it was less now than it was. It was more uncomfortable than painful. I could think clearly again, and I realised that Zafrina must have blocked their vision. Then, suddenly Garrett was in control. It was like Kate had stopped shocking him, but she was still fighting him, so it wouldn't have made sense. Before anyone could make sense of it, Carlisle spoke to Kate and Tanya.

"Listen to me, Tanya, Kate, vengeance doesn't help her now. Irina wouldn't want you to waste your lives this way. Think about what you're doing. If you attack them, we all die."

Kate and Tanya finally stopped. Carlisle and Garrett continued to comfort them. The rest of us were all on guard again, though I felt smug at the enraged look on Caius' face. Aro looked surprised. Obviously he knew exactly what Kate could do. Maybe it had shocked him, too, the way Garrett had just regained control like that. It was like he just hadn't felt the pain any more.

I had to force myself to focus: thinking about that now, would mean not paying attention to my surroundings. I looked up, and saw that the guard had taken on a defensive stance, ready for attack, and the Volturi's witnesses were now in shock, thanks to Irina's death. They were at a loss as to what her crime was. They'd just been cruelly alerted to the true ways of the Volturi. That shouldn't have been shocking. I caught some of Stefan and Vladimir's excited whispers, and I found myself laughing with them, as Aro showed his annoyance. What came next would be a poor attempt to save face on Aro's part, I was sure.

"Irina has been punished for bearing false witness against this child. Perhaps we should return to the matter at hand?" I loved it when I was right. "Just to be thorough, I'd like to speak with a few of your witnesses. Procedure, you know."

Caius' face changed then, and Edward reacted at the same moment. I heard all of our side turn their heads to look at Edward, but no one could demand an explanation because the Volturi were too close. Aro was about to put _his _strategy into play. And obviously Caius recognised it as a better one than his own.

They went for the weak spots first, of course, having found them out from Edward. They stopped in front of Amun and Kebi. I gritted my teeth as we were forced to endure the false pleasantries that Aro insisted on: I wanted to know what their next plan was.

"Carlisle called on you to witness?"

"Yes."

"And what did you witness for him?"

"I've observed the child in question. It was evident almost immediately that she was not an immortal child - "

"Perhaps we should define our terminology now that there seem to be new classifications. By immortal child, you mean of course a human child who had been bitten and thus transformed into a vampire."

"Yes, that's what I meant."

"What else did you observe about the child?"

"The same things that you surely saw in Edward's mind. That the child is his biologically. That she grows. That she learns."

"Yes, yes, but specifically in your few weeks here, what did you see?"

"That she grows... quickly."

Aro smiled. Apparently that was the thing he'd been looking for. "And do you agree that she should be allowed to live?"

A growl ripped through my teeth, and I heard other noises of protest from our side surrounding me. I suddenly felt a rush of sorrow, for Renesmee, that she had to listen to this. She may not have fully grasped the corrupt politics of the Volturi, but the rest she understood perfectly. No child should have to hear people debating their life. No _person _should have to hear that. Amun turned and looked at all of us. He didn't want to give Aro a reason to go after him, but he didn't want all of us against him either; we were a powerful force, and stronger than him.

"I did not come to make judgements." _A good answer, but Aro won't let him get away with it. _Edward turned to scowl at me. Apparently he heard that. You'd think that with what was going on right now, he'd find something else to be annoyed at.

"Just your opinion." Aro would get an answer.

"I see no danger in the child. She learns even more swiftly than she grows."

Aro nodded in acknowledgement, but didn't press the issue. He turned away and Amun made it clear that he wasn't going to fight, and left at the very first opportunity. _Coward. _Next, Aro turned to Siobhan. We understood know that it was apparently Renesmee's intelligence that Aro was using, so she was able to give a better answer than Amun, when asked what she would witness.

"Renesmee understands the limitations. She's no danger to humans – she blends in better than we do. She poses no threat of exposure."

"Can you think of none?"

"I don't think I follow you." Edward had growled and Caius suddenly looked a whole lot happier; this can't be good. I was suddenly desperate to know what they were thinking.

"No law has been broken," Aro began. But he stopped as our fury became palpable. We all knew what would come after that sentence. "No broken law," he reiterated. "However does it follow then that there is no danger? No. That is a separate issue.

"She is unique... utterly, impossibly unique. Such a waste it would be, to destroy something so lovely. Especially when we could learn so much... But there _is _danger, danger that cannot simply be ignored.

"How ironic is it that as the humans advance, as their faith in science grows and controls their world, the more free we are from discovery. Yet as we become ever more uninhibited by their disbelief in the supernatural, they become strong enough in their technologies that, if they wished, they could actually pose a threat to us, even destroy some of us.

"For thousands and thousands of years, our secrecy has been more a matter of convenience, of ease, than of actual safety. This last raw, angry century has given birth to weapons of such power that they endanger even immortals. Now our status as mere myth in truth protects us from these weak creatures we hunt.

"This amazing child, if we could but know her potential – know with _absolute certainty _that she could always remain shrouded within the obscurity that protects us. But we know nothing of what she will become! Her own parents are plagued by fears of her future. We _cannot _know what she will grow to be. Only the known is safe. Only the known is tolerable. The unknown is... a vulnerability."

"You're reaching, Aro," Carlisle told him. Reaching indeed. We only feared her future because _there may not be one. _And all that 'only the known is safe' is one of the dumbest things I've ever heard. And I have heard a _lot _of dumb things. It just sounded so... human. Fearing the unknown was just such a human thing to do, and even they were moving past that as they discovered and learnt more and more about, well, everything. It was a very poor excuse to kill Renesmee. We shouldn't be afraid of things like the humans were. I was surprised when Garrett offered to say a piece. I had only expected our witnesses to, well, witness.

"I came here at Carlisle's request, as the others, to witness. That is certainly no longer necessary, with regard to the child. We all see what she is.

"I stayed to witness something else. You." He pointed his finger accusingly at the Volturi and their witnesses behind them. "Two of you I know – Makenna, Charles – and I can see that many of you others are also wanderers, roamers like myself. Answering to none. Think carefully on what I tell you now.

"These ancient ones did _not _come here for justice as they told you. We suspected as much, and now it has been proved. They came, mislead, but with a valid excuse for their action. Witness now as they seek flimsy excuses to continue their true mission. Witness them struggle to find a justification for their true purpose – to destroy this family here." He motioned to Carlisle and Tanya, and the words he was saying began to sink in.

"The Volturi come to erase what they perceive as the competition. Perhaps, like me, you look at this clan's golden eyes and marvel. They are difficult to understand, it's true. But the ancient ones look and see something besides their strange choice. They see _power. _

"I have witnessed the bonds within this family – I say _family _and not _coven. _These strange golden-eyed ones deny their very natures. But in return they have found something worth even more, perhaps, than mere gratification of desire? I've made a little study of them in my time here, and it seems to me that intrinsic to this intense family binding – that which makes them possible at all – is the peaceful character of this life of sacrifice. There is no aggression here like we all saw in the large southern clans that grew and diminished so quickly in their wild feuds. There is no thought for domination. And Aro knows this better than I do." Garrett paused, and it was like every vampire in the clearing had turned to look at Aro's face. He paid no mind to our collective reaction, but continued to look at Garrett.

His words made me think about our entire lifestyle; did we really appear that way to others?

"Carlisle assured us all, when he told us what was coming, that he did not call us here to fight. These witnesses agreed to give evidence, to slow the Volturi advance with their presence so that Carlisle would get the chance to present his case.

"But some of us wondered if Carlisle having truth on his side would be enough to stop the so-called justice. Are the Volturi here to protect the safety of our secrecy, or to protect their own power? Did they come to destroy an illegal creation, or a way of life? Could they be satisfied when the danger turned out to be no more than a misunderstanding? Or would they push the issue without the excuse of justice?

"We have the answer to all these questions. We heard it in Aro's lying words – we have one with a gift of knowing such things for certain – and we see it now in Caius's eager smile. Their guard is just a mindless weapon, a tool in their masters' quest for domination.

"So now there are more questions, questions that _you _must answer. Who rules you, nomads? Do you answer to someone's will besides your own? Are you free to choose your path, or will the Volturi decide how you will live?

"I came to witness. I stay to fight. The Volturi care nothing for the death of the child. They seek the death of our free will."

He turned to face the ancients, and I found myself smiling at his words. They were true enough, and they gave us a sense of purpose, and it was greater than just trying to keep ourselves alive. And it was working; he was convincing their witnesses. His words rang with power, because he was speaking the truth.

"So come, I say! Let's hear no more lying rationalisations. Be honest in your intents as we will be honest in ours. We will defend our freedom. You will or will not attack it. Choose now, and let these witnesses see the true issue debated here." Again, he turned to look at the witnesses the Volturi had brought. "You might consider joining us. If you think the Volturi will let you live to tell _this _tale, you are mistaken. We might all be destroyed, but then again, maybe not. Perhaps we are on more equal footing than they know. Perhaps the Volturi have finally met their match. I promise you this, though – if we fall, so do you."

When he ended his speech, Garrett stepped back, to Kate's side, and crouched, ready for the fight.

Aro smiled. "A very pretty speech, my revolutionary friend."

Garrett refused to change his defensive stance. "Revolutionary? Who am I revolting against, might I ask? Are you my king? Do you wish me to call you master, too, like your sycophantic guard?"

"Peace, Garrett," Aro said. "I meant only to refer to your time of birth. Still a patriot, I see."

Garrett only glowered at him in return. Not that I blamed him; he had just been offended. I was beginning to really like this guy.

"Let us ask our witnesses. Let us hear their thoughts before we make our decision. Tell us, friends"—he turned around, facing his witnesses—"what do you think of all this? I can assure you the child is not what we feared. Do we take the risk and let the child live? Do we put our world in jeopardy to preserve their family intact? Or does earnest Garrett have the right of it? Will you join them in a fight against our sudden quest for dominion?"

Personally, I think it would be smarter for them if they did. But, realistically, they wouldn't. They'd be facing the same problem we had been; they'd be facing a seemingly unstoppable force.

The witnesses faces were guarded when they looked at Aro. It was as if they were afraid that the wrong answer would get them killed. Which, admittedly, with the Volturi, was a very high possibility. A dark-haired woman that was stood next to a blond guy was the only one that spoke up.

"Are those our only choices?" she questioned, her eyes darting back to Aro. "Agree with you, or fight against you?"

"Of course not, most charming Makenna," Aro replied. That evil man was such a brown-noser. It's actually sickening to think about.

"You may go in peace, of course, as Amun did, even if you disagree with the council's decision."

For sure, Amun left in peace after you _threatened_ him.

Makenna and her mate looked at each other: they'd made their decision. "We did not come here for a fight. We came here to witness. And our witness is that this condemned family is innocent. Everything that Garrett claimed is the truth."

"Ah," Aro said sadly. "I'm sorry you see us in that way. But such is the nature of our work."

"It is not what I see, but what I feel," Makenna's mate countered. "Garrett said they have ways of knowing lies. I, too, know when I am hearing the truth, and when I am not."

"Do not fear us, friend Charles. No doubt the patriot truly believes what he says."

"That is our witness," Makenna said. "We're leaving now."

The pair of them backed up, wisely not turning their backs until they were out of sight. Four more of the Volturi's witnesses left after Charles and Makenna. The ones that left were the bravest ones. They went against the Volturi, and stood for what they knew to be right. I could respect that. The other thirty-seven knew that _we _were right but were too afraid of the Volturi to turn against them.

Aro knew all this, of course. You could just tell. He addressed the remainder of his mob. "We are outnumbered, dearest ones. We can expect no outside help. Should we leave this question undecided to save ourselves?"

"No, master," the guard answered, in unison. He really needn't have bothered asking the question; they'd never go against their _master. _

"Is the protection of our world worth perhaps the loss of some of our number?"

"Yes," they breathed. "We are not afraid." Again, it was all in unison. It would have been weird if it weren't so irritating.

"Brothers," Aro said, "there is much to consider here."

"Let us counsel," Caius was all too eager.

"Let us counsel," Marcus repeated. His disinterest was obvious.

As the ancients 'counselled' two more of their witnesses left. Good. It didn't sound like we would have been fighting the witnesses anyway, but it was still good to know that there wouldn't be as many as we'd first thought. My mind flashed back to our battle against the newborns again, and the contrast was striking. This would be nothing like that. The Volturi were organised and powerful and in control over their own actions. It would be nowhere near as easy for us to fight them.

"You remember what I told you?" Bella's voice brought me out of my thoughts. She was talking to Renesmee.

"I love you," Renesmee whispered back.

I turned to look at the both of them, and I wasn't the only one. Edward and Jacob were watching, too; and by the looks on their faces, I didn't think they knew what was happening either.

"I love you, too. More than my own life." Bella kissed Renesmee's forehead. Jacob whined.

Bella whispered to Jacob. We would all hear it, but the Volturi wouldn't. Which I guess was the whole point. "Wait until they're totally distracted, then run with her. Get as far from this place as you possibly can. When you've gone as far as you can on foot, she has what you need to get you in the air." Edward and Jacob looked horrified, and I was certain that my expression was the same. Thinking about it, though, it made sense. Renesmee couldn't fight with us; she'd be killed for certain. I cringed away from the last part of that thought. It didn't bear thinking about.

Renesmee reached for Edward, and he took her in his arms. They hugged each other tightly.

"This is what you kept from me?"

"From Aro."

"Alice?"

Bella nodded. So it was hopeless. I drew my shoulders back as soon as I thought that. That was no reason to give up. We had to give Alice, Jasper and Renesmee a chance. My heart ached as I watched Edward's farewell to Renesmee. I wished that the rest of us had had a chance to say our own goodbyes. Bella and Edward weren't the only ones that loved her, after all.

I looked back at the ancients, but continued to listen to Edward and Bella's goodbyes to Jacob. I tensed when Edward called Jacob his brother and his son, but no wasn't the time to voice my opinions. I still resented Jacob for imprinting on Renesmee; I just couldn't help it. We'd probably never get on. Which is probably why I disliked the thought of him being my brother as well. That a mutt could be any brother of mine was downright repulsive.

"Is there no hope, then?" Carlisle whispered.

"There is absolutely hope," Bella told us. "I only know my own fate."

Edward held her hand and Esme went to Carlisle. Suddenly, we were surrounded by goodbyes and I love you's.

"If we live through this," Garrett whispered to Kate, "I'll follow you anywhere, woman."

"Now he tells me," she muttered. I smiled at this. Even in the midst of battle, it was good that Kate had finally found someone. At least she found him before the end.

Suddenly, Emmett was holding on to me. So and I turned around and kissed him. It was quick, but I poured all of my love and passion into it. It was the only way for us to say goodbye. Bella and Edward, Carlisle and Esme, and myself and Emmett were all silent. Maybe Garrett was right, and our bonds were stronger than the others; for us, the words weren't enough.

"Get ready," Bella's voice instantly hushed everyone. "It's starting."

**A/N: Okaaaayyyy. So, the next part is the last chapter, and it should be up sooner than this one was. **


	7. The Battle: Part Three

**The Battle: Part Three**

"Chelsea is trying to break our bindings," Edward whispered. "But she can't find them. She can't feel us here. . . ." He turned to Bella. "Are you doing that?"

"I am all over this."

I turned my head to look at Edward and Bella in surprise. I knew that Bella had been trying to extend her shield, but she wasn't doing that great – definitely not well enough to cover all of us; how could she have suddenly gotten so good?

"Incredible," Edward said.

"Why aren't they waiting for the decision?" Tanya hissed. I'd been too distracted by Bella and her power to even think to ask that question.

"Normal procedure," Edward answered. "They usually incapacitate those on trial so they can't escape."

"How lovely of them," Emmett said bitterly.

I looked across at Emmett, then at Jane, and almost laughed. The look on her face right now was priceless. I was going to enjoy every second of this; it wouldn't take long for them to realise that Bella's shield was stronger than Edward had been able to tell.

We all jumped when Jane let out a high-pitched scream of a snarl. Including the guard. We all turned to look at her, but she was glaring at Bella, refusing to tear her gaze away. This made the Romanians laugh, and, for once, I felt like laughing right along with them.

"I told you this was our time," Vladimir said to Stefan.

"Just look at the witch's face."

Alec joined her then. He didn't do anything but look at us, but from what I'd heard from Carlisle and Edward, it would be a little while before the blindness hit us. If at all.

Edward only confirmed this when he turned to Bella. "His gift is slower than Jane's. It creeps. It will touch us in a few seconds."

I looked for it. I'm pretty sure everyone did. I saw it moving towards us on the ground, and I felt myself getting angry again, but at myself, for seeing it coming and not being able to do anything. And the other annoying thing was that it was _this _that had incapacitated so many others that the Volturi had decided to condemn. _We _couldn't run. We were staying for Renesmee. But surely others had seen it coming and had the sense to get the hell out of there?

Suddenly, the ground was moving under our feet and the snow was whirling around in the space between us and them. It must have been Benjamin, because the wind seemed to be aiming straight for the mist. I half wanted it to work and half didn't. You see, if the wind that Benjamin had conjured worked, then Alec's shadow-talent could be physically moved. Which means that it's a physical talent. But, also, it would have been blown away. But, on the other hand, Bella's shield wouldn't work against it. And given that she'd so far kept all of us safe from Jane _and _Chelsea, I was rooting for Bella, right now.

It didn't work. I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding.

The ancients turned then, staring in amazement at the battle between Alec and Benjamin's talents. It was slightly fascinating to watch. The best part was their faces when they realised that Benjamin was actually physically manipulating the earth and the air.

We all waited to see whether the mist would stop. It didn't help my non-existent patience today that the only one who could see her shield was Bella. But then we all saw the mist stop, and slowly rise up, as it it was moving along the ground, still, but up a hill. Except there was no hill. Just empty space. So that must be where Bella's shield was. It was working!

We could all see the size of it as well; she was covering all of us. I gasped in shock.

Benjamin cheered for Bella, and the Volturi saw first-hand the extent of what Bella could do. The effect was astonishing; some of them looked nervous, now that the Volturi didn't look so invincible.

"I'm going to have to concentrate," Bella whispered to Edward. "When it comes to hand to hand, it's going to be harder to keep the shield around the right people."

"I'll keep them off you."

"No. You have to get to Demetri. Zafrina will keep them away from me."

That was good. Zafrina would be better at helping her.

Zafrina nodded her agreement. "No one will touch this young one."

"I'd go after Jane and Alec myself, but I can do more good here."

"Jane's mine," Kate hissed. "She needs a taste of her own medicine."

"And Alec owes me many lives, but I will settle for his," Vladimir growled from the other side. "He's mine."

"I just want Caius," Tanya said evenly.

Everyone started picking out their own opponents. I honestly didn't care; they were all the same to me: a threat to my family.

"Before we vote," Aro spoke. "Let me remind you, whatever the council's decision, there need be no violence here. It will be a regrettable waste to our kind to lose any of you. But you especially, young Edward, and your newborn mate. The Volturi would be glad to welcome many of you into our ranks. Bella, Benjamin, Zafrina, Kate. There are many choices before you. Consider them."

Aro found only resistance when he looked at out faces. He would have to kill us all before one of us even thought about joining them, and even then we would probably still refuse.

"Let us vote, then," he said.

Caius spoke quickly, like an excited child. "The child is an unknown quantity. There is no reason to allow such a risk to exist. It must be destroyed, along with all who protect it." He smiled in expectation.

Marcus's vote was next.

"I see no immediate danger. The child is safe enough for now. We can always re-evaluate later. Let us leave in peace." He sounded tired, and world-weary when he spoke. It was like he just wanted to be done with all this, with everything.

"I must make the deciding vote, it seems," Aro mused.

"Yes!"

I rolled my eyes at Edward. I was used to his random outbursts in response to people's thoughts; I'm sure I wasn't the only one who felt like they were missing something.

There was a low reaction from the guard, an uneasy murmur.

"Aro?" Edward called, nearly shouted, undisguised victory in his voice.

"Yes, Edward? You have something further...?"

"Perhaps," Edward said pleasantly, controlling his unexplained excitement. "First, if I could clarify one point?"

"Certainly," Aro said.

"The danger you foresee from my daughter- this stems entirely from our inability to guess how she will develop? That is the crux of the matter?"

"Yes, friend Edward," Aro agreed. "If we could but be positive... be sure that, as she grows, she will be able to stay concealed from the human world- not endanger the safety of our obscurity . . ." He trailed off, shrugging.

"So, if we could only know for sure," Edward suggested, "exactly what she will become ...then there would be no need for a council at all?"

"If there was some way to be absolutely sure, then, yes, there would be no question to debate."

"And we would part in peace, good friends once again?" Edward asked with a hint of irony.

Aro's voice was shrill, now. "Of course, my young friend. Nothing would please me more."

Edward laughed. "Then I do have something more to offer." What more could he possibly have to offer? I felt like I was missing something painfully obvious, and when it was revealed, I just knew I'd want to kick myself.

Aro's eyes narrowed. "She is absolutely unique. Her future can only be guessed at."

"Not absolutely unique," Edward disagreed. "Rare, certainly, but not one of a kind."

I felt slightly saddened by that; I'd always fancied the idea that Renesmee was one of a kind. But I certainly felt more hopeful than I had earlier this morning.

"Aro, would you ask Jane to stop attacking my wife?" Edward asked. "We are still discussing evidence."

Aro raised one hand. "Peace, dear ones. Let us hear him out."

"Why don't you join us, Alice?" Edward called loudly.

"Alice!" I whispered in synchronisation with Esme. Alice! Of course it was Alice!

"Alice!" "Alice!" other voices murmured around me. Even Aro.

I heard them now that I knew what I was listening for. They were running; Alice and Jasper, and... someone else? I listened harder and realised that there were three others, two vampires and another with a heartbeat. From what Edward said it was another half-breed, like Renesmee. So much relief washed through me, I wanted to dance for joy. I doubted the Volturi would appreciate my victory dance, though.

The first that walked in after Alice and Jasper was Kachiri. The next was a small olive-toned female vampire with a long black hair. Her deep burgundy eyes flitted nervously around the confrontation before her. The last was the half-breed. His skin was a rich, dark brown. His hair was black and braided, too, like the woman's, though not as long.

Alice leapt lightly over the mist and crossed Bella's shield to stop at Edward's side. Jasper and the others followed her through the shield.

The entire guard focused on Bella as the newcomers easily crossed her shield. Now that they knew that her shield wouldn't withhold a physical attack, they would all go for her. We had to keep her safe.

"Alice has been searching for her own witnesses these last weeks," Edward said. "And she does not come back empty-handed. Alice, why don't you introduce the witnesses you've brought?"

Caius snarled. "The time for witnesses is past! Cast your vote, Aro!"

Aro silenced him. Good.

Alice stepped forward and introduced the strangers. "This is Huilen and her nephew, Nahuel."

"Speak, Huilen," Aro commanded. "Give us the witness you were brought to bear."

Kachiri put a hand on Huilen's shoulder and Huilen started to speak.

"I am Huilen," Her story had obviously been practised. "A century and a half ago, I lived with my people, the Mapuche. My sister was Pire. Our parents named her after the snow on the mountains because of her fair skin. And she was very beautiful- too beautiful. She came to me one day in secret and told me of the angel that found her in the woods, that visited her by night. I warned her." Huilen shook her head mournfully. "As if the bruises on her skin were not warning enough. I knew it was the Libishomen of our legends, but she would not listen. She was bewitched."

A century and a half ago? Nahuel was still here... That meant that Renesmee would be okay! She'd get to stay with us for all of the evers that we live through! Outside, I was grinning like a loon. Inside, I was dancing.

"She told me when she was sure her dark angel's child was growing inside her. I didn't try to discourage her from her plan to run away- I knew even our father and mother would agree that the child must be destroyed, Pire with it. I went with her into the deepest parts of the forest. She searched for her demon angel but found nothing. I cared for her, hunted for her when her strength failed. She ate the animals raw, drinking their blood. I needed no more confirmation of what she carried in her womb. I hoped to save her life before I killed the monster.

"But she loved the child inside her. She called him Nahuel, after the jungle cat, when he grew strong and broke her bones- and loved him still.

This sounded really quite familiar.

"I could not save her. The child ripped his way free of her, and she died quickly, begging all the while that I would care for her Nahuel. Her dying wish- and I agreed.

"He bit me, though, when I tried to lift him from her body. I crawled away into the jungle to die. I didn't get far- the pain was too much. But he found me; the newborn child struggled through the under-brush to my side and waited for me. When the pain ended, he was curled against my side, sleeping.

"I cared for him until he was able to hunt for himself. We hunted the villages around our forest, staying to ourselves. We have never come so far from our home, but Nahuel wished to see the child here."

Huilen bowed her head when she was finished and moved back so she was partially hidden behind Kachiri.

Aro stared at the boy Nahuel.

"Nahuel, you are one hundred and fifty years old?" he questioned.

"Give or take a decade. We don't keep track."

"And you reached maturity at what age?"

"About seven years after my birth, more or less, I was full grown."

Seven years. Seven years to make the most of Renesmee's childhood, then the rest of forever.

"You have not changed since then?"

Nahuel shrugged. "Not that I've noticed."

"And your diet?" Aro pressed, seeming interested in spite of himself.

"Mostly blood, but some human food, too. I can survive on either."

"You were able to create an immortal?" As Aro gestured to Huilen, his voice was abruptly intense. I refocused on my shield; perhaps he was seeking a new excuse.

"Yes, but none of the rest can."

Aro's eyebrows shot up. "The rest?" I'm pretty sure my expression mirrored Aro's right about now.

"My sisters." Nahuel shrugged again.

"Perhaps you would tell us the rest of your story, for there seems to be more."

Nahuel frowned. He obviously didn't like this story.

"My father came looking for me a few years after my mother's death. He was pleased to find me." Nahuel's tone suggested the feeling was not mutual. "He had two daughters, but no sons. He expected me to join him, as my sisters had.

"He was surprised I was not alone. My sisters are not venomous, but whether that's due to gender or a random chance... who knows? I already had my family with Huilen, and I was not interested"- he twisted the word- "in making a change. I see him from time to time. I have a new sister; she reached maturity about ten years back."

"Your father's name?" Caius asked through gritted teeth.

"Joham," Nahuel answered. "He considers himself a scientist. He thinks he's creating a new super-race." He made no attempt to disguise the disgust in his tone.

I couldn't hide my disgust either. That was appalling. He just leaves them alone, and doesn't even care about their mothers.

Caius looked at Bella. "Your daughter, is she venomous?"

"No," Nahuel's head turned to look at Bella when she answered. He was surprised that she was here.

Caius growled. "We take care of the aberration here, and then follow it south."

Surely there was no way that he could do that; they had no case now. None at all. And we would beat them. Edward gave me a look that said, _please be serious_. Okay, so their numbers would be severely diminished.

Aro stared at Bella for some time before he made his decision. I shuddered. I don't know how she did it; it was creeping _me _out, and it wasn't even me he was looking at.

"Brother," he said to Caius. "There appears to be no danger. This is an unusual development, but I see no threat. These half-vampire children are much like us, it appears."

"Is that your vote?" Caius demanded.

"It is."

the clearing was suddenly filled with cheers on our side: including my own.

Briefly, our thoughts all flashed to Irina, who was the only one that didn't make it. I tried to focus my attention on the fact that Renesmee would be with us for the rest of forever. There would be time to mourn Irina later. Now was the time to celebrate.

Caius wasn't finish, he was just desperate to kill _someone_. "And this Joham? This immortal so fond of experimentation?"

"Perhaps we should speak with him," Aro agreed.

"Stop Joham if you will," Nahuel said. "But leave my sisters be. They are innocent."

I was surprised, and I instantly liked Nahuel. Not many people would have just ordered Aro to do something like that. I hoped that he's want to visit Renesmee in the future.

Aro turned to his guard for the final time. "Dear ones," he called. "We do not fight today."

They turned to face us, and you could see that the battle was over by the looks on their faces. They were a combination of resignation, boredom and uncertainty. I think that it would be in the best interest of the witnesses to run and never look back. The Volturi wouldn't want this getting around, even though it probably would.

"I'm so glad this could be resolved without violence," he said sweetly. And the bullshit starts again.

"My friend, Carlisle- how pleased I am to call you friend again! I hope there are no hard feelings. I know you understand the strict burden that our duty places on our shoulders."

"Leave in peace, Aro," Carlisle said stiffly. "Please remember that we still have our anonymity to protect here, and keep your guard from hunting in this region."

"Of course, Carlisle," Aro assured him. "I am sorry to earn your disapproval, my dear friend. Perhaps, in time, you will forgive me."

I barely managed to repress a snort; like _that _would happen.

"Perhaps, in time, if you prove a friend to us again."

Aro tried to look apologetic, but we all saw through it. After that he, the other ancients, and the remainder of the guard just left. They left. They left!

"Is it really over?" Bella whispered to Edward.

"Yes. They've given up. Like all bullies, they're cowards underneath the swagger." He chuckled.

"You know it!" Emmett laughed. "You know, it's nice that we didn't have to fight at all... but I really wish I could have gotten a shot in at least."

Alice laughed with him. "Seriously, people. They're not coming back. Everybody can relax now."

There was another beat of silence.

"Of all the rotten luck," Stefan muttered. I guess the Romanians were disappointed that they didn't get their fight. I didn't care, I wanted to laugh with Emmett and Alice.

It hit everyone right then and the cheers that erupted were deafening. It certainly didn't help when the wolves joined in and started howling. Maggie pounded Siobhan on the back. I didn't see anything else, because I was kissing Emmett again. There was fire where his lips touched mine, and it spread through my entire body, along with the joy and victory. I pulled back and grinned at him. Nothing mattered any-more because we all had forever.

I went to look for the rest of my family among the visitors and found Bella crooning over her daughter. "Nessie, Nessie, Nessie!"

I sighed. I really wish she hadn't piked up that horrendous nickname. I'd be alone in that battle now that Bella had deserted me.

"I get to stay with you?" Nessie demanded of Bella.

"Forever," She promised.

If I could have, I would have burst in to tears I was so happy.

Instead I just wrapped my arms around Emmett. I was still absorbing the fact that they'd left. They'd left. The words were thrown around in my head, but I still wasn't comprehending. I couldn't believe we'd won. We'd beaten them; the vampire royalty, the ancient and most powerful group of vampires in the world and we'd beaten them. So it hadn't been a physical fight, but the victory was still there. I didn't have time to think any-more: Emmett had grabbed me by the shoulders and was kissing me like there was no tomorrow. I didn't pay attention to anything around us. I wasn't even concerned for Renesmee. I didn't want to think right now. All I knew was that my Emmett was kissing me, and I had him for the rest of forever.

**A/N: Woo! I finally finished this! When I started writing this, I was really into the Twilight fandom, but then I sort of overdid it and went off it for a bit. After that, this story was just forgotten about. Which is why it took me so long to update in the middle, but now it's finally done! I hope you enjoyed. **


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